Electric-railway system.



R. STEARNS. ELECTRIQRAILWAY SYSTEM. APPLICATION FILED MAY 1, 1908'.

921,176. Patented Mayll, 1909,

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

A m )J k: E. u 55% O q R1 N a R] .n- W

m y L. |I v b l:- H Q;

n Q- E *1 WITNESSES: JNYLAZ27R wumxwm Y RAY Emma 1n: NORRIS PETERs'cm, WASHINGTON, Lx c .R. STEARNS.

- ELECTRIC RAILWAY SYSTEM.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 1, 1908.

Patented May 11, 1909.

8 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

[NI/ENTUH.

' HAY 512251157315.

.ATTY

rJ'N'rE STATES PATENT oEEroE.

RAY STEARNS, 0E sonENEorAnr, NEw YORK, AssIeNoR TO GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY,

AOORPORATION' or NEW YORK.

ELECTRIC-RAILWAY SYSTEM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 1 1, 1909.

Application filed May 1, 1908. serial No. 430,251.

- zen of the United States, residing at Schenectady, county of Schenectady, State of New York, have invented certain. new and useful Improvements in Electric-Railway Systems, of \vzihich the following is a specification.

the supply conductor has at certain points unenergized sections. When trains of electrically driven cars are operated upon a line of this kind, if either a main or lighting bus line is used to connect the various cars, there is a likelihood that when one of the cars of the train enters upon an unenergized section, j

It is an object of my invention to provide 1 means for opening the line switch of a car when that car enters uponan unenergized section of line, thereby disconnecting thecur rent collector of that car from the bus-line, while at the same time the feeding'of "the lighting and, if desired, the motor and control circuits of that car from the 'bus' line, is

not in any way interfered with.

In the drawings I have shown certain illustrative embodiments of my invention.

. Figure 1 shows diagrammatically two cars of a train, intended foroperation on adirect current equipped with my invention; Fig. 2-

is a diagram, similar to Fig. 1, showing my invention applied to an alternating current railway system, the bus line serving to, carry motor as well as control and lighting'current from car to car; and Fig. Sis a diagram similar to Fig. 2, but showing a system in which the bus line is intended to carry'only the lighting current. i

Like parts are referred 'to by similar reference characters throughout the several figures.

Referring. to Fig. 1, at A is indicated certain apparatus on one car of the train, while at B is similar apparatus on another car. The current collector T ofv car A is shown in engagement withan energized'section of line L, and the current collectorT of car B is in engagement with an unenergized section of line L, the rails or ground being used as a return in the usual way. A line switch S, which may be of any well-known form, is provided on each car, and in the present case is indicated as being of that type which is biased to an open position and is closed when invention relates to electric railway, systems, and particularly to those in'which an actuating coil is energized. When the switch S is'closed the current collector T is connected to a main bus line C and to the motor circuit of the car through a wire D. The motor circuit may be controlled by any suitable form of controller which forms no part of my invention and has, therefore, not been illustrated. Lamps E on the various ,line and connected to ground. As shown, the

auxiliary current collector F is supposed to be a third rail shoe of any suitable and wellknown kind which engages with a third rail G connected to ground and extending along the track throughout the unenergized section of line. The operation of the system of Fig. 1 is as follows: As long as a car is on an energized section of line the relay U will be deenergized and the mainline switch S will be automatically closed and held closed byenergization of its actuating coil, as shown on .car A. Under this condition the current collector T .of this .car will be connected to the bus line C and to the motor supply circuit D of that car. Just before the current collector of a car enters upon anunenergized section the auxiliary collector F will engage with the rail G and the actuating coil of the relay U will be energized thereby opening the contacts controlled by this relay and interrupting the circuit through the actuating coil of the main line switch S, as shown on car B. Opening of the switch S on car B disconnects the current collector T on that car from the bus line C and the potential of the bus line cannot, therefore, be applied to the unenergized section.

need not be described in detail.

Fig. 2 shows a system very similar to Fig. 1, but arranged for an alternating current railway system, the only diil'erences being that the line switch S connects the current collector T to the main compensator M from the taps m on which motor current is taken, and that the current for the actuating coil of the switch S is supplied from a small stepdown transformer N. The bus line C is connected to a high potential point on the compensator M. The operation of this system is similar to that of the system of Fig. 1 and It is obvious that the lamps and motors of a car on an unenergized section of line will be supplied from the car or cars on an energized section and that energization of the deenergized section of line will be effectively prevented.

Fig. 3 shows my invention arranged for an alternating current railway system in which auxiliary eompensators M are provided for supplying current for the lamps E, the bus line C in this case being simply for carrying this current between cars. The relay U which corresponds in this system with relay U in the system of Fig. 2, controls not only the circuit through the actuating coil of the main switch S, but also the connection of the auxiliary compensator M with the bus line C. In this system when a car enters an unenergized section of line the main line switch of that car is opened and connection with the bus line and the auxiliary lighting compensator of that car is interrupted. The supply of current to the motor circuits of that car will, therefore, be interrupted but the lights thereon will still be supplied through the bus line C of the car or cars which are on an energized section of line.

I have shown certain forms in which my invention may be embodied, but I do not wish to be understood as limiting it to these, except as called for by the following claims.

W hat I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is,

1. In an electric railway system having a supply conductor provided with energized and unenergized sections, a plurality of electrically driven cars, current collectors upon said cars arranged to engage said supply conductor, a bus line extending from car to car,

line switches on the several cars biased to an open'position and arranged to connect the bus line to said current collectors, an actuating coil for each switch which when energized causes the same to close, and means upon each car cooperating with means supported along the track near the junction of ener- 7o gized and unenergized sections of supply conductor for closing the circuit through. the actuating coil of each line switch when the current collector of its car is in engagement with an energized section of supply conductor and 7 5 for opening the circuit through the actuating coil of a switch when the current collector of its ear is on an unenergized section.

2. In an electric railway system having a supply conductor provided with energized so and unenergized sections, a plurality of electrically driven ears, current collectors upon said cars arranged to engage said supply conductor, a bus line extending from car to car,

line switches on the several cars arranged to connect the bus line to said current collectors, an actuating coil for each line switch which when energized causes said switch to close and when deenergized allows it to open, a

switch normally closing the circuit through said actuating coil, and means for opening said last mentioned switch when the current collector of its car is in engagement with an unenergized section of supply conductor.

3. In an electric railway system having a supply conductor provided with energized and unenergized sections, a plurality of electrically driven cars, current collectors upon said cars arranged to engage said supply conductor, a bus line extending from car to car,

line switches on the several ears arranged to connect the bus line to said current collectors, an actuating coil for each line switch which when energized closes the same and when doenergized allows it to open, a switch which normally closes the circuit through said actuating coil, an actuating coil for said last mentioned switch, and means upon each car cooperating with means supportedalong the track adjacent the junction of energized and unenergized sections of supply conductor 1'01 completing a circuit through the actuating coil of the last mentioned switch when the current collector of its car is in engagement with an unenergized section of supply 0011- ductor.

4. In an electric railway system having a supply conductor provided with energized and unenergized sections, a plurality of electrically driven ears, current collectors upon said ears arranged to engage said supply conductor, a bus line extending from car to car, line switches 011 the several cars arranged to connect the bus line to said current collectors, an actuating coil for each 1.25

line switch which when energized causes the same to close and when deenergized allows it to open, a relay on each car normally completing a circuit through the actuating coil of the line switch on that car, an auxiliary cur- 1 30 rent collector carried by each car, an actuating coil for said relay connected between said bus line and said auxiliary current collector, and a conductor having connection with ground mounted along the track throughout an unenergized section of supply conductor and arranged for engagement by said auxiliary current collector.

5. In an electric railway system operating upon alternating current and having a supply conductor provided with energized and arranged to supply current to the actuating coil in the line switch, a bus line extending from car to car, a switch normally complet ing the circuit through the actuating coil of the line switch and connecting said bus line to said auxiliary transformer, an actuating coil'for said last mentioned switch, one terminal of which is connected to said bus line, and means on the car cooperating with means mounted along an unenergized section of line for connecting the other terminal of the actuating coil to the last mentioned switch to ground and thereby causing this switch to open.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 29th day of April, 1908.

RAY STEARNS. 

